Welcome back to This Week In Games Australia, your weekly look at what you’ll be playing in the days ahead.
This week, it’s all about the indies. The Last of Us Part I debuts on the PC, becoming the sole AAA release for the week. That’s where NZ studio Black Salt Games’ Dredge come in. Please play Dredge when it launches later this week. You’ll kick yourself if you don’t. Without question, a Game of the Year contender. Elsewhere, there’s plenty to get excited about with games like Drop: System Breach, Nine Years of Shadows, Terra Nil, Infinite Guitars and The Last Worker all on the way.
In case you missed it on Friday, the latest episode of The Kotaku Australia Podcast covers quite a few of the games in this list and features chats on the recent Diablo 4 beta and Aussie word game success story Gubbins! The podcast serves as a little preview of this column every week, and you can find us on your podcast platform of choice every Friday.
With that, here’s what you’ll be playing this week.
March 28
Drop: System Breach (PC)
Drop: System Breach is a roguelike about being a hacker. A freelance hacker by trade, your goal is to impress other users in the DROP system favoured by other hackers. Break into heavily secured digital vaults, have a sniff around, and leave no trace of having been there. But with each new system you breach, you’ll start to uncover a factional war between secretive agencies that could change the world as we know it.
Heartwood Heroes (PC)
Heartwood Heroes is a fast-paced four-player digital board game. Take on quests, engage is short turn-based combat sessions and make split second decisions when random events occur. Your goal: become Hero of the Week. There’s local multiplayer, but you can also play online with friends via Steam Remote Play, meaning you’ll only need one copy between the entire group.
Nine Years of Shadows (PC)
Nine Years of Shadows is a new Metroidvania from Halberd Studios. It’s got a real SNES aesthetic going on, which drew both Ruby and I in right away. There’s everything you want from a good Metroidvania going on here — cool visuals, lots of exploration, tough combat. Its on PC via Steam later this week.
The Secret Life of Dorian Pink (PC)
The first words out of Ruby’s mouth when we were watching this trailer last week were “This looks very gay.” And it does, actually, it does. The Secret Life of Dorian Pink is a modern retelling of Oscar Wilde’s novel The Picture of Dorian Grey, set in an alternate version of the story. Cute, queer, and just the kind of weird we love.
March 29
Forza Horizon 5: Rally Adventure (XSX, PC, XBO)
We’re going back to Mexico for one last drive. Forza Horizon 5‘s latest (and possibly final) major expansion takes players offroad with a new suite of rally-themed racing. For those that couldn’t get enough offroading in the original, this is the expac for you.
Gripper (PC, NS)
Gripper is a game about doing sick Akira-style slides on your futuristic motorbike. It’s about other things too, but I want to focus on what’s important here: Akira slides.
Innchanted (PC)
Innchanted is a game about running a little bed-and-breakfast with your friends. The trouble is, you have to run this B&B in the same way Overcooked chefs run their kitchen — chaotically. While Innchanted tries to strike a less stressful tone than Overcooked, communication and teamwork will still be order of the day — you’ll need to prepare the inn for trade each day, make sure everyone’s fed and that rooms have been tidied, that guests are checked in, and that everything is running smoothly. One for your next cozy game night.
The Last of Us Part I (PC)
I feel like we’ve had a lot of The Last of Us on the brain the last few months, thanks to the TV show. Well, there’s more to come (though this will likely be the last we see of The Last of Us for a while). The PC version of last year’s The Last of Us Part I, a ground-up rebuild of the original game for the PS5, finally arrives on Steam and the Epic Store this week. I feel like there isn’t much to say about TLOU at this point that hasn’t already been said. What I’m mostly happy about is that the game is finally available to an audience that has never gotten to play it before. I know a great many rusted-on PC stalwarts that have always looked over my shoulder at the splendours of the PlayStation’s exclusive library, and this is the crown jewel. PC fans, I hope you enjoy it. God knows, you waited long enough.
Terra Nil (PC, iOS, AND)
Terra Nil is a city-builder game with a bit of a difference. It’s a game about terraforming a dusty, dry world into a habitable, earth-like zone. It’s about bringing a dead world back to life, and the steps you’ll need to take to ensure that the ecological systems you’ve created can sustain themselves into the future. It’s great stuff, you may have played the demo during Steam Next Fest last year. Recommended.
March 30
Dredge (PS5, XSX, PC, NS, PS4, XBO)
Our game of the week. Created by New Zealand’s Black Salt Games, Dredge is a game about the existential dread that creeps in when it’s just you and a fishing rod on the waves. You play a fisherman stranded in a small town called Greater Marrow. Given a ship and a debt to pay, you begin to fish. Slowly, as you pay your debt and upgrade your ship, the range you can fish in expands, and Dredge begins to unfurl its many mysteries. A masterclass and a Game of the Year contender without a doubt. Recommended.
The Great War: Western Front (PC)
The Great War: Western Front is a new World War I RTS from a crew of developers behind Command & Conquer. For fans of the genre, and historic milsims in general, this will be unmissable gear.
Infinite Guitars (XSX, PC, NS, XBO)
A rhythm RPG that mixes Guitar Hero style note charts with character systems, turn-based battles, mech fights and a ton of widdly-widdly guitar shredding. Fans of Gitaroo Man rise up.
The Last Worker (PS5, XSX, PC, NS, META, PSVR 2)
Portal fans, you’ll want to pay attention to this one. A clear and savage parody of working conditions at Amazon, The Last Worker is a game about the nature and meaning of work. You’ve been given the opportunity of a lifetime — Joseph Jüngle, CEO of the Jüngle online store, has agreed to give you a tour of the 650 million square ft Jüngle Fulfilment Centre. And that’s where the fun starts, a comedic narrative game about humanity’s struggle in an increasingly automated world. The game also features performances from Jason Isaacs (Harry Potter, Star Trek Discovery) and David Hewlett (Stargate Atlantis).
Troublemaker (PC)
Troublemaker is a game about a group of punch enthusiasts starting a gang at school. It’s as silly as it sounds, and the combat looks like Yakuza, so I’m automatically in.
March 31
Blade Assault (PS5, XSX, NS, PS4, XBO)
Blade Assault is a side-scrolling beat-em-up set in a cyberpunk world that is about punching guys real hard. Guys come at you and you hit them until they go away, and it’s rad, quite frankly. This one’s been out on PC for a while, so if it sounds familiar, that’ll be why.
Formula Retro Racing: World Tour (PS5, XSX, PC, PS4, XBO)
It’s the week of the Australian Grand Prix. I couldn’t not put this on the list.
Lunark (PC)
Lunark is a cinematic platformer in the vein of Prince of Persia from developer Canari Games. This one caught Ruby’s and my eye before we recorded the podcast last week and we think it’s well worth your time. Watch this trailer and tell me you’re not enticed. Great presentation, strong platforming vibes, cool story and setting. Lunark‘s got it all.
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